I’m not a huge fan of Woody Allen movies. I’ve only liked a handful of them. Then I watched MIDNIGHT IN PARIS this morning. I loved this movie. First it’s a fantasy, and I wish I had seen it before I did my Hugo nominations, and it speaks to that all too human condition of dissatisfaction with our lives.
Owen Wilson was enormously appealing and hapless, and he was a writer which made him all the more endearing to me. I loved the fact that (apparently) much of the dialog from Stein and Hemingway and Porter were actual statements they had made.
The visuals of Paris were magical, and it made me want to go back tomorrow. Music was used to great effect as well. It’s a celebration of art, and life, and trusting your instincts, and ultimately finding beauty and meaning in the here and now.
I really liked this movie.
I think it’s certainly his best film in a while and I liked it also. My one problem with it was that the parents and fiancee were annoying stereotypes. I think there were points to be made on their side of the argument but because they were so cartoonish, that side of the equation didnt’ work.
Oh, I loved this movie, too. i didn’t know about the dialog being actual quotes from the real-life writers. I’m going to have to go buy this movie now, because there was that great line by Hemingway (who was that actor, BTW, he was hot!) about love and passion but I can’t exactly remember how it went now because it was last summer when I saw it.
I was enjoying the movie in a low-key sort of way, bothered mildly by the stereotypical nature of several of the principals. And then came the protagonist’s epiphany, which was presented in direct contrast to the emotional state of the love interest, who had not reached the same level of maturity, making the protagonist’s realization and subsequent decision all the more poignant. That perfect moment made the movie for me.